Mass Effect: Aftershock
by DCrim1
Summary: After a long hard fought war with the Reapers and Cerberus, it appears that peace is at hand, but what is left of the galaxy?


Mass Effect: Aftershock

Prologue 

It was over, the Reapers had been defeated, but at a heavy cost, civilizations lay in ruins, and the mass relays have been severely damaged and the Citadel lay in ruins. It could all be fixed, although it would only take time. As the dust settled over London, it was clear just how much destruction had occurred, and the extent of the Reapers reign of terror. But it was over, and a peace was falling over the galaxy. People had begun to accept that it really was over, and that the reapers were truly gone. But now the rebuilding would begin, and they would be able to come to terms with the new normal.

Not far from where portal to the Citadel was, a group of soldiers had begun clearing away the rubble. They were more than happy to be doing the mindless grunt work. It beat the horrors of fighting the Reaper war. PFC Sean Waters was lifting a piece of rubble when he made a startling discovery. He had discovered Commander Shepard.

"Oh my God! Uh someone… Somebody give me some help here!" PFC Waters said.

A group of Krogan had heard the commotion and had come over to see what all the commotion was about. They were joined by the leader; Urdnot Wrex, the Krogan leader.

"What's with all the commotion human?" Wrex asked. "What did you find?" Wrex asked excitedly.

"Sir…Sir it's… It's…"PFC Waters choked out the words.

"Well spit it out soldier! What did you find?" Wrex asked anxiously.

"Sir it's Shepard! I found Shepard!" PFC Waters said excitedly.

Wrex and the other Krogan began to clear the rubble so that they could get to Shepard. Wrex could only hope that they would find Shepard alive. He knew it was highly unlikely that they would, but still they had to try! Maybe there was some hope that he survived whatever it was that happened on the Citadel. And as the last pieces of rubble were being lifted away, Shepard exhaled a single yet extremely labored breath.

"My God… He's… He's alive! Shepard's alive!" PFC Waters exclaimed with Surprise.

"Somebody inform Admiral Hackett about this, he's going to want to know about this… and someone get me a damned medic!" Wrex ordered. "It's going to be okay Shepard, we're going to get you to a doctor and you're going to be okay. They're going to fix you up and get you back in shape!" Wrex said turning to Shepard.

As he was saying this, a group of medics came over to tend to Shepard with a stretcher and other supplies. As they were securing him to the stretcher a call came through Wrex's Omni-tool, it was Admiral Hackett. Wrex activated the call.

"Wrex its Hackett, they tell me that you've found the body of Commander Shepard! Is that true?" Admiral asked anxiously.

"No Hackett, we found him ALIVE! His breathing was really labored, but he's alive! I've got them taking him to Myuzaka Memorial Hospital. They still have power and their damage is minimal at worst. Has anyone contacted the Normandy yet?" Wrex asked.

"No Wrex, we haven't. But there will be time for that later. There is more important work that needs to be done; I need you and your Krogan to… Hackett said before he was cutoff.

"You think there are more important things, than notifying his crew that he's alive? They are his family! He sacrificed everything so that they could be safe and so that they would live! How many times must he sacrifice his life for you! No more Hackett! His crew has a right to know that he's alive! And what about Liara? She of all people has a right to know that Shepard is alive! And you want to keep this from them? You want them to go on thinking that he's dead?" Wrex asked furiously, he could feel the Blood Rage building in his body. After all they had been through, Shepard had become like a brother to him, and a hero to the Krogan, and it infuriated him that Hackett seemed to dismiss this news so easily.

"Wrex I'm not saying they shouldn't be contacted, just….Fine, call them if you wish, but then make sure Shepard is safe!" Hackett said ending the call.

Wrex, the Krogan, and the soldiers got Shepard to the hospital where he was immediately rushed into surgery. After things had quieted down, Wrex was left alone to his thoughts. He thought of what he would say to the crew of the Normandy, would he even be able to reach them? He quickly put that thought out of his mind and was determined to find a way to get the word out to the crew. He owed that much to Shepard. As he was walking to a comm room, he thought of everything that he and Shepard had been through over the years; from their meeting on the Citadel, to Seren's cloning facility on Virmire, to curing the Genophage on Tuchanka, to the final battle on Earth. Shepard was like a brother to him, and as he opened up the comm link, he took a deep breath and prepared himself for the conversation with the Normandy crew.

Chapter I: Good News Has At Last Come

"I just can't believe he's gone… I mean maybe he survived…I" Joker said trying to fight back the tears. "I mean we don't know for sure…." Joker could no longer hold back the tears. Commander Shepard never lost faith in him; he always treated Joker like a brother.

"Joker… I know how hard this is, I mean Shepard was my best friend, and knowing that he died so that we could all live, is extremely difficult. But we need to be strong for Liara. She's taking this really hard… We'll be adding Shepard's name to the memorial wall soon… Maybe we could have some sort of ceremony… I don't know, maybe say a few words. What do you think Ash? I mean this is your ship now… I think" Garrus said putting his hand on Joker's shoulder trying to console him.

"…I uh… I think that it's a great idea, I'll tell the crew to assemble in ten minutes" Ashley said as. She knew that until they heard from Admiral Hackett, or from Alliance Command, that she was in command of the SSV Normandy. Although to her, the SSV Normandy would always belong to Commander John Shepard. "Garrus, I may be acting captain of this ship, but you and I both know that this will always be Shepard's ship. Personally I say, once we get back to Earth, the Alliance retire this ship and use it as a monument to Shepard." Ashley said as she turned to leave the cockpit. With Shepard out of commission she had assumed the role of acting commander, and decided to appoint Garrus Vakarian as her executive offer. She knew the Alliance would have a field day with that one, but she thought it a proper tribute to the management style of Shepard. She walked over to her private information station and activated the comm. "Attention crew, this is acting captain Ashley Williams… In ten minutes we will be having a small memorial service for Commander Shepard at the memorial wall, on the crew deck. If you wish to attend you may, however it is not mandatory… that is all" Ashley said as she clicked off the comm. She made her way to the elevator and selected the crew deck. Once there she made the walk to Liara's cabin. She knocked on the door but heard no answer. She knocked a few more times, but still heard no answer, so she just opened the door. She looked around and saw Liara sitting in her bed with Shepard's dog tags, crying.

Oh…Ashley… I uh…I didn't hear you come in" Liara said wiping here tears away. "What can I do for you?" She asked shakily.

"We're uh… We're going to be having a small service for Shepard at the memorial wall in about five minutes. I uh… I wasn't sure if you wanted to come to it or anything. I don't want you to feel like you have to come to it or anything" Ashley said unsure of if she was saying the right thing.

"I would like that… You since I became the Shadow Broker, I have been so used to having all the information, being able to control the flow of information, but now… Goddess I don't know what to do, I feel so useless. I know that John wouldn't want me to think like that, but I just… I just feel so alone without him!" Liara said dejectedly.

"Hey now…" Ashley said hugging Liara. "I know that you feel alone… but you're not alone! You will never be alone, we are all here for you and we always will be here for you! Me, Garrus, Tali, Joker…We've all been together since the beginning. And I will never let you be alone! We're all here for you, just remember that! Never forget that we're family here!" Ashley said attempting to comfort Liara "The service is going to be starting soon, let's go together" Ashley said as she and Liara stood up.

"Thank you Ashley, thank you for being there for me" Liara said as they left the cabin. As they approached the wall, Ashley looked out at it and it brought a tear to her eye, knowing that the sacrifices of those whose names were on the wall, allowed for them to live…allowed for the galaxy survive. And despite overwhelming odds, they did defeat the Reapers, and the people on the wall would never get to see the peace that so many fought and died for.

A crewman approached Ashley with a box that contained Shepard's nameplate. "Ma'am, the plate is ready for placement" The private said handing her the plate. By this time the crew had assembled and was ready for the ceremony.

"Team" Ash said clearing her throat. "We gather here today to mourn the loss of Commander John Shepard… The savior of civilizations everywhere. The first time that I met Shepard was on Eden Prime. My whole unit had been wiped out by Geth, and I really felt like I was going to die, but then Shepard shows up, and I'm saved. If it hadn't been for him I would have died that day. After the mission was over he made me feel welcome on the Normandy, he never once treated me like an outsider. He was always coming down and talking to me, whether it was about the missions, or just about my family. He became more than my commander… He became my friend, and then on Virmire…he saved my life, even though it would have been easier to save Kaidan, he always did the right thing. And when I got chosen to be the second Human Specter, it was Shepard who encouraged me to go through with it. He always allowed us to make the right decisions and never forced his will on us, and he always stood by us good or bad. I... I'm really going to miss him. Garrus…I was thinking maybe you would want to do the eulogy. I mean you and he went through thick and thin together. From the beginning it was Shepard and Vakarian!" Ashley said

"Thanks Ashley… Shepard was more than just some human, or a Specter. He was a damn good man, and he was my friend! He always took time out of his day to talk to us about how we were doing. He always treated everyone like they were his equal. Whether you were out on the front lines doing battle with him, or whether you were a janitor. I first met him on the Citadel; I had been trying to convince the Council that Seren was up to no good, but they refused to believe me. Shepard took the time to listen to what I had to say, and even though I had no solid proof of what Seren was up to, Shepard believed me. He brought me aboard the Normandy and he let me help take down Seren. And just when I thought he was dead, he showed up on Omega and saved my life from the mercenary gangs. It was nice to be back working with him again. Although he could tell that I was upset, so he talked to me about the problem, and when I wanted to resolve the issue, he took time away from his mission and helped me take care of the problem on the Citadel. He never questioned my judgment on the matter, he just had faith that it would help me resolve issues and be in a better mind frame. He never once gave up on me, even after everything that we went through. He never gave up on me, he was my best friend, and he sacrificed so much of himself so that others could live. He gave his life so that the Reapers would be destroyed and we would all be able to live the lives we want to live. And it is in that spirit that we must carry on. We need to live life to the fullest, so that his death will not have been in vein! To Commander Shepard; our Commander, Our hero, our friend… our brother! Garrus said no longer able to hold back his tears.

"To Commander Shepard!" The entire crew said in unison.

"Liara would you like the honors of placing Shepard's nameplate on the wall?" Ashley asked holding the nameplate in her hands.

"Thank you Ashley" Liara said as Ashley handed her the nameplate. Liara approached the wall and placed the nameplate on the center panel, and with a single tear, she whispered the words "Until I see you again my love… I love you". Ashley tried consoling Liara as best she could.

The crew departed and went about their daily routines. Finishing the Normandy's repairs was a top priority. Ashley was at her private information station going through files when Joker came over the comm.

"Uh Lt. Commander we have an urgent message coming in from Earth…It's Urdnot Wrex!" Joker said.

"Are you serious? Patch him through!" Ash ordered excitedly.

"Comm link is choppy, but here goes!" Joker said.

"…Hello… hello can anyone here me? Damn it! Is this thing working? Hello?" Wrex said through the shaky comm link.

"Wrex we can here you! This is Lt Commander Williams, Wrex it's great to hear your voice, you're the first person we've been able to get in contact with. What's happened? Have the Reapers been destroyed?" Ashley asked.

"…Reapers… dead…get to earth a.s.a.p.… found Shepard…get here…" Wrex said, but the comm went down.

"Wrex?...Wrex are you there? Joker get him back!" Ashley ordered

"Commander I've tried, but the comm's down! " Joker said.

"Dammit! Joker do we have flight capabilities up and running yet?" Ashley asked

"Yeah, as far as repairs go it was mainly external, but it looks like we're good to travel, you thinking of heading home?" Joker asked, hoping that they would be going home to Earth.

"That's exactly what I'm thinking….Joker set a course for Earth!... Actually make that London, England to be specific!" Ashley ordered.

"Aye Lt. Commander! Setting course for London England! ETA about five days!" Joker said.

As everyone else was going about their business, Liara made her way up to Shepard's cabin. Even though Ashley was in command of the Normandy, she didn't like being there. Nobody really liked being in the cabin. It brought back too many memories of Shepard. Liara had overheard some of the crew refer to it as a tomb. She could see where they were coming from, but still someone had to feed Shepard's fish. As she fed the fish, she looked around the cabin, seeing it as it looked the last time Shepard had been there, and as she looked over at the desk she noticed something sticking out of a book. She got up to take a look at it and noticed an envelope. She knew that the she probably shouldn't be going through Shepard's things, but her curiosity got the better of her. She turned the envelope over and saw her name written in Shepard's handwriting. She sat down at his desk and opened the envelope, she took out a letter and read from it.

_Dearest Liara:_

_If you are reading this letter, then I didn't make it back alive. I am so sorry to have to leave you, but it was the only way to ensure civilization's survival. But if you are reading this, it also means that we did it! Despite the odds stacked high against us, we persevered against the Reapers. The galaxy can now begin to recover and repair itself. I just wish that I could be there to celebrate with you and spend the rest of our lives together. There is so much that I wanted to experience with you. I wanted to have a home, get married, and even have a family with you. Liara I want you to know that the time we spent together was the greatest and most important part of my life, and that you were the greatest influence in my life. Whenever I would doubt myself or lose faith in what I was doing, you were always there to keep me strong, and you never lost faith in me! Not once! Through everything I have always loved you, and it gives me great comfort to know that even though I am gone, you will be able to live your life. And I want you to live your life to the fullest, because I can't be at peace if I know you're not happy. Just know that no what happens, I will always love you, and one day you and I will be together again_

_All my love always,_

_John_

Liara read the letter over a few times and decided she would honor John's wishes. She got up and left the cabin, taking the letter with her. As she was in the elevator she started feeling sick. She figured it was just due to lack of sleep. She decided that as soon as she got back to her cabin she would lay down and try to get some sleep. As she got off on the Crew Deck she ran in to Tali. "Hey Liara are you okay? You don't look so good!" Tali said, noticing that Liara looked quite ill.

"I… I'm fine Tali… I just… I…" Liara said collapsing to the ground, Tali caught her before her head hit the ground.

"Help! Somebody I need some help her!" Tali screamed, hoping someone would come quickly.

Garrus and Dr. Chakwas came running over when they heard Tali scream. "Tali what happened?" Dr. Chakwas asked.

"I don't know… She stepped off the elevator and she looked pretty ill, and then the next thing I knew she collapsed! What's wrong with her?: Tali asked nervously.

"I'm not sure what's wrong with her, but we need to get her to the med bay immediately! Garrus can you and Tali get her?" Dr. Chakwas asked.

"Sure thing Doc!" Garrus said as he and Tali lifted Liara, and carried her to the med-bay. They set her down on a bed and Dr. Chakwas began taking vials of Liara's blood.

After about an hour Liara began to wake up. "What….Where am I?" Liara asked in a daze.

"It's okay Liara, you're in the med –bay, you passed out. Everything is going to be okay I just need you to relax. I want to run one more test… just to be sure." Dr. Chakwas said as Liara was trying to get up.

"Dr. Chakwas I feel fine… Really! I just need rest. I'm sure I'll be fine in a day or so after I've had some rest. I mean I really haven't had much sleep since we left Earth." Liara said.

"Please Liara, I just want to perform a quick ultrasound. It will only take five minutes and then you can be on your way!" Dr. Chakwas said.

"Alright, if you feel it is absolutely necessary Dr. Chakwas" Liara said as she opened her blouse so Dr. Chakwas could perform the ultrasound.

Dr. Chakwas flicked on the machine and as it warmed up rubbed the gel on Liara's stomach. As she was performing the ultrasound her suspicions were confirmed in a few short moments. "Ah ha!, Just as I thought!" Dr. Chakwas said excitedly.

"What is it? Did you find something?" Liara asked anxiously.

"Why yes Liara I did! I ran several blood tests, and they all had the same result, and now this ultrasound confirms it one hundred percent…. Liara… You're pregnant!" Dr. Chakwas said excitedly.

"Goddess I'm…pregnant? Are you sure?" a stunned Liara asked.

"Yes Liara I'm quite sure. Here let me show you the monitor, See right there? That's your baby!" Dr. Chakwas said showing her the monitor.

Liara looked at the image on the screen and smiled. She was smiling because it appeared that this was Shepard's last gift to her. This would be her second chance at life. And when their daughter was old enough and could understand, she would tell her all about her daughter's father and the hero that he was. She and Dr. Chakwas had a very long conversation on prenatal care, and everything that Liara needed to do to ensure that the baby would be safe and healthy. Liara got cleaned up and thanked Dr. Chakwas for all of her help. Liara went back to her cabin and tried to relax. She decided to call it a night and go to sleep. And as she drifted off to sleep, she was comforted by the thought that Shepard would always be with her. Now in more ways than one.

It had been four days since Liara had found out that she was pregnant with Shepard's baby. She was sitting down at the table in the mess hall with Garrus, Tali, Javik, James, and Ashley having breakfast that morning when she decided to tell them the news. "Everyone… I have some important news I would like to share with you!" Liara said nervously, not knowing what everyone would say about it.

"What is it Liara? You can talk to us about anything, you know that!" Ashley said, noticing how nervous Liara looked.

"Well four days ago, I fainted as you all remember. Well Dr. Chakwas ran several tests and they all had the same result… I… I'm pregnant!" Liara said excitedly.

"Congratulations Liara! This is great!" Ashley said hugging Liara.

"Wow, this is pretty big news… just think, a little Shepard running around? That little one is going to be getting into a whole lot of mischief!" Garrus said jokingly.

The crew was taking turns congratulating Liara, and talking about the baby, and they all had the same promise. That they would all help her with whatever it was that she may need. It was during this conversation when Joker came over the comm. "Uh… I hate to break up the chat session, but we are fast approaching Earth, we should be landing in London in about ten minutes!" Joker said excitedly. Very soon they would be back home. It would be the first time they had seen it since the Reaper War.

Ashley, Garrus, Tali, James, Javik, and Liara all crowded the cockpit with Joker and Edi, and as the Normandy descended to earth, they got their first view of London. They saw the remains of the Reapers all around them. But what they also saw was the reconstruction efforts already under way. As they touched down at the Alliance Base of Operations, they saw a line of soldiers all saluting them, and out in front in his dress blues was Admiral Steven Hackett. They touched down and all exited the ship. As they stepped off the ship, Hackett approached and saluted them all.

"Welcome home Lt. Commander Williams! You're all a sight for sore eyes!, I didn't think we'd ever see you all alive and well. With the relays damaged, we really haven't had any contact with a whole lot of people. If you will follow me, I will show you all to your quarters" The admiral said.

"Thank you sir! By the way, have there been any arrangements made for the funeral yet?" Ashley asked.

"Funeral? I'm not quite sure I follow you?" Admiral Hackett said perplexed.

"…Commander Shepard's funeral! Please tell me that you haven't already had it?" Ashley said nervously.

"Lt. Commander I think there has been some sort of mix-up! Didn't Wrex contact you?" Hackett asked.

"Yeah, he told us that you guys located Shepard's body, but the comm went down before we could find out anymore, and we haven't been able to get in contact with anyone else until now!" Ashley said.

"Well Lt. Commander… What Wrex was trying to tell you guys, is that… that Shepard is alive!" Hackett said, he noted the stunned expressions of the crew.

Liara spoke first "Goddess he's alive?... But how? Where?" Liara asked, still shocked by the sudden revelation.

"There is still so much that we don't know! The only one that really knows what happened on the Citadel is Commander Shepard, and he hasn't regained consciousness yet. He's in a coma over at Myuzaka Memorial Hospital. I can have a transport take you over there if you would like!" Hackett said.

"Thank you Admiral that would be great!" Ashley said as Hackett summoned for transports.

The crew got in the transports and made their way to the hospital, on their way there they noticed how extensive the destruction truly was. Before, all they were focused on was defeating the Reapers, but now with the Reapers destroyed, they were able to see how bad it truly was, but at the same time, they were surprised by the cooperation between races in the rebuilding process. They stopped at the hospital and quickly exited the transports. It didn't take them long to find Shepard's room. It was guarded by a group of Krogan, and there was also a large team of Salarian, Turian, and Asari doctors discussing Shepard's treatment. The Krogan stepped aside to let the crew in. When they entered the room they saw got their first sight of Shepard. They couldn't believe that it was true, and that he was actually alive, but yet they couldn't believe how bad he looked. But they all knew that if anyone could make it out of this it was John Shepard. He was a fighter and he would make it out alive and better than ever. Liara went over to the bed and sat down in the chair by the bed.

"…Uh let's give Liara and the Commander some privacy!" Ashley said, and nobody fought her on it. They exited the room, leaving Liara alone with Shepard.

"Liara took Shepard's hand in hers and held it. And as she held his hand she broke down in tears. They were not necessarily tears of sadness, but rather tears of joy! Shepard had come back to her once more. This time they could be together. This time there would be no Reapers, Collectors, nor Cerberus to keep them apart from each other. As she was looking at him she felt him squeeze her hand and saw his eyes slowly open.

"Goddess, you're…." Liara couldn't finish her sentence.

"Li… Liara?" Shepard said coming back to life once more.

They were together once again, and together they would stay


End file.
